Track-type machines are in widespread use in construction, farming, mining, forestry, and other similar industries. The undercarriage of such track-type machines utilizes track assemblies, rather than wheels, to provide ground-engaging propulsion. Such track assemblies may be preferred in environments where creating sufficient traction is difficult, such as those frequently found in the industries identified above. Specifically, rather than rolling across a work surface on wheels, track-type machines utilize one or more track assemblies that include an endless loop of coupled track links defining outer surfaces, which support ground-engaging track shoes, and inner surfaces that travel about one or more rotatable track-engaging elements, such as, drive sprockets, idlers, tensioners, and rollers, for example.
A seal assembly of the kind employed for retaining lubricant within a sealed cavity and excluding foreign matter from the bearing surfaces between relatively moving parts disposed within the sealed cavity can frequently be used in various applications in the undercarriage, such as, those associated with the track rollers, idlers, and final drive system of the undercarriage, for example. A typical seal assembly can comprise a face-type seal wherein sealing is accomplished by mating surfaces of relatively rotating seal parts of hard material. In seals that employ two rings relatively rotating in face-to-face contact, the production of a seal assembly which will endure and maintain a seal throughout many hours of severe service is highly desired.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,241,844 is entitled, “End Face Seal Assembly with Installation Retention Means.” The '844 patent is directed to an end face seal assembly and installation thereof which involves the provision of means forming a part of secondary sealing members of the assembly and capable of maintaining frictional as well as sealing engagement with surface areas on which the secondary sealing members are mounted to prevent displacement of the seal assembly during installation thereof as well as prevent the introduction of foreign matter along an edge portion during operational use of the seal assembly. The secondary sealing member includes a projecting barb or lip-like means located to initially establish and maintain frictional engagement of the secondary sealing member with a part on which the same is mounted.
It will be appreciated that this background description has been created by the inventors to aid the reader, and is not to be taken as an indication that any of the indicated problems were themselves appreciated in the art. While the described principles can, in some aspects and embodiments, alleviate the problems inherent in other systems, it will be appreciated that the scope of the protected innovation is defined by the attached claims, and not by the ability of any disclosed feature to solve any specific problem noted herein.